


Manipulating Death

by ThatDamAthena



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-03
Updated: 2016-01-03
Packaged: 2018-05-11 13:00:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,931
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5627476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatDamAthena/pseuds/ThatDamAthena
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>If things went a little differently at the final battle with Gaea...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Manipulating Death

**Author's Note:**

> First of all, ALL characters belong to Rick Riordan (obviously). Also, I didn't really mean for it to be all solangelo-y. It just happened. I'm a big fan of winging it, and it just kind of naturally flowed that way, so whatever. Thanks for reading!

*Note* First part taken directly from chapter 53 (LIII) of Blood of Olympus to set the scene

[Nico’s POV]  
Michael Kahale took in the scene- his boss’s robes tangled in the trigger rope, Octavian’s jewelry fuming from proximity to the imperial gold ammunition. He glanced up at the dragon, now high in the air, surrounded by rings of storm clouds like the circles of an archery target. Then he scowled at Nico. Nico readied his own sword. Surely Michael Kahale would warn his leader to step away from the onager. Surely he would attack.  
“Are you certain Octavian?” asked the son of Venus.  
“Yes!”  
“Are you absolutely certain?”  
“Yes, you fool! I will be the savior of Rome. Now keep them away while I destroy Gaea!”  
“Octavian, don’t,” Will pleaded. “We can’t allow you-”  
“Will,” Nico said, “we can’t stop him.”  
Solace stared at him in disbelief, but Nico remembered his father’s words in the chapel of bones: Some deaths cannot be prevented.  
Octavian’s eyes gleamed. “That’s right, son of Pluto. You are helpless to stop me! It is my destiny! Kahale, stand guard!”  
“As you wish.” Michael moved in front of the machine, interposing himself between Octavian and the two Greek demigods. “Centurion, do what you must.”  
Octavian turned to release the catch. “A good friend to the last.”  
Nico almost lost his nerve. If the onager really did fire true- if it scored a hit on Festus the dragon, and Nico allowed his friends to be hurt or killed… But he stayed where he was. For once, he decided to trust the wisdom of his father. Some deaths should not be prevented.  
“Good-bye, Gaea!” Octavian yelled. “Good-bye, Jason Grace the traitor!  
Octavian cut the release wire with his augur’s knife.  
And he disappeared.  
The catapult arm sprang upward faster than Nico’s eye could follow, launching Octavian along with the ammunition. The augur’s scream faded until he was simply part of the fiery comet soaring skyward.  
“Good-bye, Octavian,” Michael Kahale said.  
He glared at Will and Nico one last time, as if daring them to speak. Then he turned his back and trudged away.  
Nico could have lived with Octavian’s end.  
He might even have said good riddance.  
But his heart sank as the comet kept gaining altitude. It disappeared into the storm clouds, and the sky exploded in a dome of fire.  
* * *

 

Nico had no time to think before a familiar screech pierced the air. It brought him right out of his state of shock regarding Festus the dragon and the onager. The screams came yet again, and this time, it was clear who they belonged to. No. Please, dear gods, don’t let it be her. I raced off in the direction of the cries, with Will trailing close behind.

The scene before him was almost too much to take in. A blood soaked Hazel, lying in the dirt. A Roman boy covered in cuts, killing off the monster that left her like that. My ears were ringing and my heart was pounding. I couldn’t do anything but scream.  
“NO!! NO NO NO!” This can’t be real. It’s all just a dream.  
I swooped down next to my little sister. Will was right by my side, already scanning over her wounds. They’re too deep. She’s not going to make it.  
“There’s poison coursing through her body as we speak. She needs immediate attention-”  
“No.” it was the raspy voice of the daughter of Pluto. “Just leave me. I can’t just cheat death every time.”  
We made eye contact, and we both knew it was hopeless. I could feel her soul fading away by the second.  
“H-Hazel!” I sobbed over her, her blood seeping through my own clothes.  
Will understood that it was over, and knelt down next to Nico with an arm around him, which I normally would have been embarrassed, but nothing mattered right now except the girl lying in front of me.  
“Nico, please don’t come find me in the underworld. The fates are not kind, and we can’t change what they’ve chosen.” I reluctantly nodded, still in hysterics. Her breathing was becoming rapid and urgent now, and the sight was too much for me. Once upon a time, her eyes had been glimmering golden and full of light and love. Now, they were gone of their colour, pleading with Nico to accept her inevitable death. Not everyone gets their happily ever after. In fact, no one in the history of the Greeks ever have. 

I pulled her into one last hug that I wish could last forever. I whispered to her what I never wanted to have to say. “Not another sister.” I managed to say between sniffles and uneven breaths.  
“I-I’m sorry…” She choked out and coughed up blood onto the already bloody battle fields. 

And I could feel her go limp in my arms.

I was apparently screaming pretty loud now, because I caught the attention of a certain eagle scanning the hill for remaining monsters. 

There was Frank Zhang standing before me, realising what he was looking at. First, just a look of sheer horror. Then came his awkward, silent tears.  
I set the body of Hazel Levesque on the ground, even though I wanted to hold her forever.  
Soon after, we were joined by Reyna, who was shocked, but wasn’t emotional like I was, or even Frank. Although I could tell how sad she was.  
I decided it was time to leave. I got up with the help of Will, and walked back to the Hades cabin alone. Will had too many injured to deal with. I was in no mood to deal with anyone asking if I was okay. I probably should have been in the infirmary because of my shadow traveling, but Will was probably too busy to notice my absence.  
All night long, awful thoughts clouded my dreams. You could have saved them. Leo and Hazel both. But you let them die you fool.  
I constantly tried to remind myself that there was no way I could have stopped Octavian’s onager of doom. So I couldn’t have saved Leo. And Hazel specifically told us not to save her. But I should have anyway.  
The thoughts argued back and forth. I missed her gleaming gold-tawny eyes. I knew what to do. Will Solace may or may not hate me for it, and there was a large chance of permanent damage, but there’s no one to stop me.

I took a deep breath. There was no going back now. I concentrated and used all my will power. But unfortunately, at that exact moment, a certain son of Apollo stepped through the door to the cabin.  
“NICO, NO!! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” He was clearly horrified, and I knew this was coming.  
I willed myself to hurry up, and it took far more energy than I had hoped. Will Solace lunged at me, in hopes to stop me, but he was too late. We both went tumbling through, and materialised in the very graveyard that I first summoned the ghosts in with Minos. 

Immediately, I regretted it. My head hurt more than any time I had ever shadow traveled before. The world began to shake before me, and I started to worry that the Earth mother had risen again. No. Impossible. I reminded myself. It occurred to me that I was the one shaking, and I collapsed to the rock-hard cemetary ground.  
My senses started to cloud up like a window that’s been frosted over in the winter.  
“Oh my gods, Nico!” I could just barely hear the voice of Will, but it sounded as if he were saying it underwater.  
My vision blurred until everything was black, and I passed out.

When my senses were regained, the first thing I saw, was a worried looking Will Solace sitting by me, as I had with Hazel, just today. The sky was still dark as could be, and I guessed it to be about midnight.  
“Nico!” He sounded so relieved, and it was genuine too. But then he seemed to remember why we were in this situation in the first place. “Nico di Angelo, I thought I could trust you! You promised no more shadow travel! What the Hades, you could have died!” His voice shifted from angry, to disappointed, to sad.

I sighed deeply and tried to sit up. Will pushed him down.  
“Don’t even try. You don’t have enough strength.” He fed me a piece of ambrosia, which he apparently always had supplies of in his pocket.  
The sensation rushed through me, and I felt a surge of power.  
“Will, come on, I just have to do this. Please.” He seemed to consider it while looking at the peaceful night sky.  
He nodded, and without a word, helped Nico to his feet. Once he was steady, he walked over to the tree he had chosen 4 years ago. Tied to a low hanging branch, were happy meals.

 

It took roughly an hour to dig a big enough hole, even with the help of Will. Slowly, he dumped in the 4 year old happy meals (It’s true. They don’t ever rot).  
When my chanting came to an end, the ghosts began to appear. Hand in hand with Will, we dealt with the ghosts, until there was one with dark chocolate like skin, and eyes that shined like the pure gold she would unearth.  
“Nico, what were you thinking?” Her voice like sweet honey, but full of concern. She and I both knew that any more shadow traveling would kill me.  
“I wanted to see my only sister left, just one more time.” I say in a sad whisper.  
Her expression changes to sadness.  
“I will see you soon enough. Be careful, Nico. I love you, and I will never leave you for good.” 

And just like that, the ghosts disappeared.

I nearly forgot Will was clinging to my side, his face pale like the full moon high in the sky. He looked as if he had seen a ghost. Oh wait 

 

Breaking the silence, a sharp howl could be heard not too far away. And it was not your average coyote or wolf either. The only creature capable of making that noise, was unfortunately, a hellhound. And not Mrs. Oleary either. I thought it couldn’t get worse. It did. There was a whole pack of them, and they were surrounding us quickly. There was only one way out of this…

“Nico. I know what you’re thinking. DO NOT shadow travel us out of here.”  
“So I should just let us both die then? Will, I can’t do that.” They were not far away now, and we needed to get the Hades out of here.  
“We’ll find a wa-”  
“Will, there’s no other way. Accept it, please. It will make it a lot easier.” I could see tears forming in his sapphire blue eyes in the moonlight. And then I did the stupidest thing I could possibly do in this situation. I kissed him. 

It seemed to slow the whole world down, and make you see all the beautiful little things that you might not notice any other time. It numbed the pain of leaving Will behind, alone in the world without me. We dipped into the shadows and arrived next to what looked like Thalia’s Pine. Will was definitely crying now, still locked in a tight embrace in the grass. I managed to whisper one last thing to the son of Apollo, before I was drained of my energy. I love you.


End file.
